Burnaby school officials say revenue lost with the cancellation of the school district’s summer school program could pale in comparison to lost international student fees if the ongoing teachers’ labour dispute continues into the next school year.
Summer school, excluding international students, was expected to break about even this year, with $2.1 million in estimated revenue and just under $2 million in budgeted expenses.
International student fees were expected to total an additional $250,000.
The district is still working out how the lost revenue will compare with the money it saved on teachers’ wages during strike days.
The education ministry has said districts will be able to keep 20 per cent of that money.
“Once these figures are known we may be able to offset any summer school losses against any net savings we are able to retain at the district level,” superintendent Kevin Kaardal said.
He said the revenue the district lost from international students was small compared to districts with bigger programs like Vancouver and Richmond.
He’s more worried about the impact the labour dispute could have on the district’s international program during the regular school year, which is expected to bring in $14.3 million and cost about $8 million next year.
“That has a huge impact on the potential for the budget if we’re not up and running in September,” Kaardal said. “The impact is much smaller now.”
It’s an issue that goes beyond Burnaby, he said.
“It’s a matter of reputation,” he said. “This labour dispute is putting the whole reputation of international education in a global market for British Columbia at risk.”
And that loss of reputation could seriously impact the district’s bottom line.
“The district is very reliant on international student revenues,” secretary-treasurer Greg Frank told the NOW in an email. “These revenues enhance significantly the educational services we can afford to provide all of our students as well as the employment opportunities for our staff.”
The district cancelled all summer school classes last week after talks between the B.C. Teachers’ Federation and the B.C. Public School Employers’ Association failed to stop the ongoing teacher strike from continuing into the summer.
